Assembling device



Nov; 17, 1936.

C. J. FILIPAK AS SEMBLING DEVICE Filed Sept. 11, 1934 .2 Sheets-Sheet l Nov. 17 1936.

C. J. FILIPAK ASSEMBLING DEVICE Filed Sept. 11, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Nov. 17, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ASSEMBLING DEVICE Application September 11, 1934, Serial No. 743,609

11 Claims.

This invention relates to assembling machines and will hereinafter be described with relation to its application to machines for assembling the parts of an electric light plug or cap. It is of course to be understood, however, that without material modification various features of the invention are equally applicable to the assembly of parts of other articles, and the present disclosure is largely illustrative.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a simple and practical mechanism for assembling parts, especially where a screw driving action is desired, which will be compact in construction and reliable in operation.

Another object is to provide a mechanism of the above character which will be largely automatic in its operation. A further object is to provide a mechanism which will firmly hold the article while its parts are being assembled and eject the finished article at the end of the operation.

Other objects will be in part obvious from the annexed drawings and in part hereinafter indicated in connection therewith by the following analysis of this invention.

This invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of parts and in the unique relation of the members and in the relative proportioning and disposition thereof, all as more completely outlined herein.

To enable others skilled in the art to fully comprehend the underlying features of this invention that they may embody the same by the numerous modifications in structure and relation contemplated thereby, drawings depicting a preferred form of the invention have been annexed as part of this disclosure, and in such drawings like characters of reference denote corresponding parts throughout all of the views, in which Fig. 1 is a front elevation with the enclosing cover or casing removed;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail view partly in section showing the main driven shaft and control shaft with associated parts;

Fig. 4 is a detail plan view of the work holder and ejector mechanism;

Fig. 5 is a detail side elevation, partly in section, of the ejector mechanism;

Fig. 6 is a detail end view of the clutch and driving pulley.

Fig. 7 is a detail perspective View of the control cam shaft.

The invention will now be described with relation to its application to assembling the binding screws holding the terminal contacts of electric light caps, that is, the male member of a plug attachment, but as above stated the invention is susceptible to various modifications and application according to the use to which it is to be put.

Before describing the machine in detail, it may be briefly stated that the machine performs one complete cycle in operation on the article to be assembled, that is, the cap in this case, after it is placed in the machine. This complete operation or cycle comprehends the placing of the cap in the holder, preferably manually, and starting the machine. The cap is first gripped, then the screw drivers are automatically depressed, rotated and withdrawn, the gripper released, the cap ejected, and the machine stopped, that is, unclutched from a continuously driven motor. The machine is then ready for a repetition of this cycle on insertion of a new cap.

With this general statement in mind, refer now to the drawings in detail and more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2. A base member ID of substantially rectangular shape is adapted to carry a suitable source of power such as indicated by a motor II provided with a starting and stopping switch I2 connected to any suitable source of electricity. This forms no part of the invention except in so far as it contributes to the compactness, portability, and simplicity of the entire devlce.

The motor shaft I3 is provided with a belt I4 which passes over a pulley I5 slidably mounted upon a main driven shaft I6 extending fore and aft of the machine. This driven shaft I6 is suitably mounted in bearing members I! forming part of the machine frame and has positioned parallel thereto a longitudinally movable stub shaft I8 also mounted in the same bearing members ll of the frame. This shaft I8 carries at one end an offset plate 20 engaging a portion of the clutch actuating mechanism or clutch throwout 2|. The shaft I8 is normally urged in one direction towards the right by means of a spring 22 and when released by the operation of the machine it causes one or the other of two holes 23 (Fig. 6) in the pulley I5 to be engaged by the off-center stud 24 on the driven shaft I6 thus clutching the driven shaft I 6 and pulley I5 or source of power.

This second or stub shaft I8 is moved axially by means of a starting and stopping lever 25 shown in Fig. 2, which is of bell-crank shape pivoted at 26 and having at its opposite end a beveled or wedge-shaped portion 21 (Fig. 4) coacting with a lever 28 (Fig. 3) pivotally mounted upon the stub shaft l8. When the actuating portion or handle of the lever 25 is moved upwardly by the operator to start the cycle, the cam portion 21 moves rearwardly and causes this depending lever 28 to move laterally or at right angles for the purpose as will be presently explained.

Going back to the main driven shaft I6, it will be noted that it is provided with two worms, one of which (30) at the forward or front end drives a worm gear 3| (Fig. 2) mounted upon a vertically disposed shaft 32 carrying at its upper end a relatively large pinion or gear 33 whichin turn meshes with two spur gears 34 carried at the upper ends of two screw driver shafts 35. Thus as these screw driver shafts 35 are rotated by means of the spur gears, the screw engaging portions at the lower ends will be correspondingly rotated to set the screws in the socket member cap indicated at 36 resting on plate 3'! (Fig. 3).

The other worm 46 on the main driven shaft l meshes with a relatively large worm gear 4| positioned at one end of what may be termed a control shaft 42 extending transversely of the machine and near the rear thereof. This con trol shaft 42 is provided with three cams now to be described which rotate with the shaft and in one complete rotation of the shaft accomplish their respective functions in the desired sequence.

The first cam 43 (Fig. 2) coacts with the lever 28 previously mentioned and controls the starting and stopping of the machine at each complete cycle of operation. This cam 43 which is of segmental shape and about 60 in arc normally bears against the lower end of the lever 28 and, when it engages this lever near the end of its period of rotation, it urges the same towards the front of the machine, or left (Fig. 2), thus throwing out the clutch 2324 (Fig. 6) and stopping the driven parts. When the actuating lever 25 is moved upwardly, this lever 28 is thrown laterally to one side of the cam 43 by the bevel edge 21; the clutch is immediately thrown in and the control shaft 42 rotated to such an extent that the lever cannot return laterally to. normal position until after the cam 43 has made at least onequarter of a revolution, and on completion of the cycle the initial or front side of the cam 43 engages this lever 28 and forces it towards the front of .the machine (left, Fig. 3) to throw out the clutch as is about to be done with the parts in the position shown in Fig. 3.

The second or middle cam 44 (Fig. 3) on the control shaft 42 is of similar shape but approximately 100 in a segmental arc, and cooperates with a horizontally disposed lever 45 extending fore and aft in the machine and normally held in slightly raised position at its front end by means of a spring 46 as clearly shown in Figs. 23. As soon as the machine is started, this cam 44 turns downwardly in effect and simultaneously moves the lever 45 downwardly about its pivot 41 carrying a yoke 48 embracing the two screw drivers 35, thus bringing the screw drivers into engagement with the screws in the cap 36 and holding them yieldingly in that position while the screws are being tightened. After the control shaft 42 has made approximately half of a revolution, the cam 44 moves effectively away from the lever 45, Fig. 3, thereby allowing the lever to move upwardly under the action of the spring 46 to draw the screw driver elements out of coacting relation with the screws.

It will be noted that immediately below this lever 45 there is provided a Work 1.10 161 5" P oted at 5| in a U-shaped frame portion 52 and connected with the lever by means of a yieldingly extensible tubular link 53 in such manner that when the lever moves downwardly, the gripping jaws 56 will also be moved downwardly to hold the work in position while it is being operated upon. A spring 55 (Fig. 2) permits relative independent movement, if necessary. This work holder 53 consists of a plate having a slot 56 so positioned as to engage the contact terminals of the cap in such manner as to insure the screws of the cap being directly below the screw drivers passing through openings 5'! in the holder 50.

The third cam Ell, Fig. 5, mounted upon the control" shaft 42 is for actuating the ejector mechanism. At the top of the frame there is positioned a transverse bearing shaft 6i downwardly from which'extends an adjustable arm 62 carrying a block 63 near its central part for cooperation with the cam 50 and having its lower end yieldingly connected with a pin 64 at one end of a longitudinally reciprocating bar 65 which on its forward movement, or towards the left-Fig. 5, cooperates with the slot 56 in the work holder 55 to pass therethrough and eject the assembled socket member or cap 36. A spring 66 connected to pin 67 at the forward end of the bar 65 returns the parts to normal position and prevents damage under abnormal conditions. Thus it will be seen that substantially at the end of the movement of the control shaft, the cam 60 comes into contact with the block 63 to perform this ejecting operation as illustrated by the dotted lines in Fig. 5.

The complete cycle of operation of the device is substantially as follows: We may assume that the motor II is running constantly. The operator first places a socket or cap 36 with its parts to be assembled in the slotted jaw 56 of the holding member 50 and resting upon plate 31 constituting a portion of the main frame. The cap is pressed into this slot 56 of the holder as far as it will go and then the starting lever 25 is raised. When this is done, the first effect is to move the lever 28 laterally of the stub shaft l8, and the compressed spring 22 immediately urges this shaft rearwardly, or to the rightFig. 3, and carries the pulley into engagement with the clutch pin 24 of the driven shaft 16 as shown. As soon as this is done, the main gear M on the control shaft 42 starts to rotate from worm 40, thus preventing an immediate return of the lever 28 and causing the cam 44 to bear downwardly upon the lever 45 which through the link connection 53 causes the work holder 50 firmly to grip the cap 36 (Fig. 3) while it is being operated upon. Simultaneously with this preliminary movement, however, the worm 3B and gear 3| cause a rotation of the pinion 33 cooperating with the upper ends of the respective screw drivers 35 which are rotated in the desired direction to tighten the screws in the cap. Also, simultaneously with this movement, the second cam 44 (Fig. 3) on the control shaft 42 causes the forward end of the lever 45 to move downwardly carrying the screw drivers 35 into engagement with the work. After these screw drivers have been given the desired number of turns to insure tightening of the screws, the control shaft 42 has then made over half of a rotation which releases lever 45 and causes the screw drivers 35 to move upwardly and simultaneously relieve the pressure of the work holder 50 upon the work. The third cam 6!] then comes into play to actuate the ejector 65, forcing the cap out of the gripping jaws and slot 56. By this time the first cam 43 has nearly completed its movement of one rotation and has engaged the lever 28, moving the same towards the front of the machine or left from position shown in Fig. 3, which movement causes a compression of spring 22 and the stub shaft IE to move longitudinally in the same direction and carry the pulley out of engagement with the clutch pin 24 on the driving shaft l6, thus stopping the machine at once. This completes the cycle of operation whereupon the operator then inserts a new cap with wires attached for assembly and immediately upon raising the starting lever 25, the operation is repeated.

It is thus seen that the present invention contemplates a safe and reliable machine of durable yet simple construction which, without material modification, is applicable to a wide range of uses in mechanically assembling small parts heretofore laboriously done by hand. The machine is compact and may be easily moved from place to place as a unit, as desired. It is well adapted to accomplish among others all of the objects and advantages herein set forth.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of this invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt it for various applications without omitting certain features that, from the standpoint of the prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalency of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a work support, pivotally mounted means for moving a tool into and out of engagement with the work, means for driving said tool including a source of power, spring-pressed means for connecting said source of power with said tool at the beginning of each cycle of operation and automatic cam-actuated, spring controlled releasing means for disconnecting said source of power at the end of each cycle of operation, and pivotally mounted means for simultaneously gripping the work as the source of power is connected and for releasing the work just prior to disconnection of the source of power, and means for actuating said first-mentioned means and said last-mentioned means.

2. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a work support, pivotally mounted means for moving a tool into and out of engagement with the work, means for driving said tool including a source of power, means for connecting and disconnecting said source of power with the tool at the beginning and end of each cycle of operation, pivotally mounted means for simultaneously gripping the work as the source of power is connected and for releasing the work just prior to disconnection of the source ofpower, and cam actuated means slidable on said gripping means for ejecting the work outwardly from the support after the gripping means has been released and prior to disconnection of the source of power, and means for actuating said two pivotally mounted means.

3. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a tool adapted to be moved into and out of engagement with work to be operated upon, a driven shaft for said tool, a transversely disposed control cam shaft, gearing connecting said shafts whereby they operate in unison, a source of power, means for coupling said shafts with the source of power at the beginning of the cycle of operation, a cam on said control shaft for disconnecting said shafts from said source of power at the end of the cycle of operation, a second cam on said control shaft for moving the tool into and out of engagement with the work during the cycle of operation, pivotally mounted means operating simultaneously with the reciprocating movement of the tools for gripping the work and for releasing the work, and means mounted on and slidably associated with said gripping means to eject said work subsequent to the release thereof.

4. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a tool adapted to be moved into and out of engagement with work to be operated upon, a driven shaft for said tool, a control cam shaft, gearing connecting said shafts whereby they operate in unison, a source of power, means for coupling said shafts with the source of power at the beginning of the cycle of operation, cam means on said control shaft for disconnecting said shafts from said source of power at the end of the cycle of operation, a second cam means on said control shaft, a lever actuated by said second cam means for moving the tool into and out of engagement with the work during the cycle of operation, and pivotally mounted means operating simultaneously with the reciprocating movement of the tool for gripping the work and for releasing the work, said last-mentioned means being yieldingly connected with said lever.

5. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a tool adapted to be moved into and out of engagement with work to be operated upon, a driven shaft for said tool, a control cam shaft, gearing connecting said shafts whereby they operate in unison, a source of power, means for coupling said shafts with the source of power at the beginning of the cycle of operation, cam means on said control shaft for disconnecting said shafts from said source of power at the end of the cycle of operation, a second cam means on said control shaft for moving the tool into and out of engagement with the work during the cycle of operation, pivotally mounted means for gripping the work and for releasing the work operating concomitantly with the engagement and disengagement of the tool with the work, respectively, a third cam means mounted on said control shaft to actuate said gripping and releasing means, and means slidable on said gripping means for ejecting the work from the work holder just prior to completion of the cycle of operation.

6. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a source of power, a main driven shaft intermittently driven by said power, a plurality of gears on said main driven shaft, a horizontally disposed control shaft driven from one of said gears, a vertically disposed shaft driven by another of said gears, a rotatable tool, means to rotate said tool, said means comprising gearing between said tool and said vertically disposed shaft, a stub shaft substantially parallel to said main driven shaft and associated therewith, clutch means associated with said stub shaft automatically controlling said intermittent drive, and cam means on said horizontally disposed control shaft to actuate said clutch means.

7. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a source of power, a main driven shaft intermittently driven by said power, a

plurality of gears on said main driven shaft, a

horizontally disposed control shaft driven from one of said gears, a vertically disposed shaft 'driven by another of said gears, a rotatable tool,

means to rotate said tool, said means comprising gearing between said tool and said vertically disposed shaft, a stub shaft substantially parallel to said main driven shaft and associated therewith, clutch means associated with said stub shaft automatically controlling said intermittent drive, cam means on said horizontally disposed control shaft to actuate said clutch means, work gripping and releasing means, and a second cam means on said horizontally disposed control shaft to actuate said work gripping and releasing means coincidentally with said clutch actuation.

8. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a source of power, a main driven shaft intermittently driven by said power, a plurality of gears on saidmain driven shaft, a horizontally disposed control shaft driven from one of said gears, a vertically disposed shaft driven by another of said gears, a rotatable tool, means to rotate said tool, said means comprising gearing between said tool and said vertically disposed shaft, a stub shaft substantially parallel to said main driven shaft and associated therewith, clutch means associated with said stub shaft automatically controlling said intermittent drive, cam means on said horizontally disposed control shaft to actuate said clutch means, work gripping and releasing means, ejector means mounted on said gripping and releasing means, and a third cam means mounted on said horizontally disposed control shaft to actuate said ejector at a predetermined time during the driven period of the apparatus.

9. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a source of power, a main driven shaft intermittently driven by said power, a plurality of gears on said main driven shaft, a horizontally disposed control shaft driven from one of said gears, a Vertically disposed shaft driven by another of said gears, a rotatable tool, means to rotate said tool, said means comprising gearing between said tool and said vertically disposed shaft, a stub shaft substantially parallel to said main driven shaft and associated therewith, clutch means associated with said stub shaft automatically controlling said intermittent drive, means pivo-tally associated with said control shaft and said tool to raise and lower the tool a pre determined distance during the driven period of the apparatus, and cam means on said horizontally disposed control shaft to actuate said pivotally associated means and said clutch means.

-10. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a source of power, a main driven shaft intermittently driven by said power, a plurality of gears on said main driven shaft, a horizontally disposed shaft actuated by another of said gears, a plurality of rotatable tools, means to rotate said tools simultaneously at the same speed in the same direction, said means comprising a gear mounted on said vertically disposed shaft, and a gear mounted on each of said tools engaging said gear on said vertically disposed shaft, said gears on said tools being substantially identical, a stub shaft substantially parallel to said main driven shaft and interconnected therewith, clutch means associated with said stub shaft automatically controlling said intermittent drive, and cam means on said horizontally disposed control shaft to actuate said clutch means.

11. In apparatus of the character described, in combination, a source of power, a main driven shaft intermittently driven by said power, a plurality of gears on said main driven shaft, a horizontally disposed control shaft driven from one of said gears, a vertically disposed shaft driven by another of said gears, a rotatable tool, means to rotate said tool, said means comprising gearing between said tool and said vertically disposed shaft, a stub shaft substantially parallel to said main driven shaft and associated therewith, clutch means associated with said stub shaft automatically controlling said intermittent drive, said clutch means comprising a bell crank associated with said driven shaft and a pulley having a plurality of apertures therein also associated with said main driven shaft, said bell crank adapted to engage one of said apertures, said pulley being directly connected to said source of power whereby upon engagement of said pulley and said bell crank said driven shaft is driven from said source of power, and means automatically controlling the engagement of said bell crank and said pulley, said means comprising cam means on said horizontally disposed control shaft.

CASMIER J. FILIPAK. 

